1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a tape supplying and taking up apparatus and tape cassettes for use therewith, and more particularly is directed to a tape supplying and taking up apparatus for selective use with two types of cassettes having different large and small sizes.
2. Description of the Related Art
A tape supplying and taking up apparatus is known in which two types of tape cassettes of different large and small sizes can be used. One example of a conventional tape supplying and taking up apparatus of the type mentioned is a tape supplying and taking up apparatus employed in certain video tape recorders of the so-called compatible type in which a standard tape cassette for the so-called VHS system and a small size tape cassette, commonly called a C-cassette, can be selectively used.
A VHS standard tape cassette and a C-cassette have certain structural features in common, in that the tape reels and the access holes formed in the bottom wall of the cassette casing for exposing reel spindle engaging holes of the tape reels have the same diameters in both cases. The diameters of the tape reels and of the access holes are determined by the need to maintain accurate rotation of the reels in a VHS standard tape cassette. As a result of the foregoing, in the C-cassette which is of relatively small size, the tape reels are of unnecessarily large diameter so that space is wasted within the cassette casing and only undesirably limited amounts of tape can be accommodated in the C-cassette. Further, the relatively large diameter tape reels require correspondingly large access holes in the bottom wall of the cassette casing, and such large access holes in the bottom wall of the small C-cassette casing are not readily closed by means of a shutter of the kind used on tape cassettes for a digital audio tape recorder.